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Of discourse and dialogue : the representation of power relationships in selected plays by Shakespeare

Du Toit, Seugnet (2004-04)

Thesis (MA)--University of Stellenbosch, 2004.

Thesis

ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In this thesis I will look at the way in which power relationships are presented in
Shakespeare's dramas, with specific reference to the so-called ''Henriad'', Measure for
Measure and The Tempest. Each play consists of a network of power relationships in
which different forms of power interact on different levels. Different characters in the
above-mentioned plays have access to different forms of power according to their
position within these networks. The way in which the characters interact could also
cause or be influenced by shifts and changes in the networks of power relationships
that occur in the course of the action.
I will use Michel Foucault's theories on the relationship between power,
knowledge and discourse as a guide to my analysis of Measure for Measure. I will
also use selected aspects of Mikhail Bakhtin's theories on language and literature,
with specific references to the concepts of "dialogism" and "heteroglossia" or "manyvoicedness",
as well as his concept of carnival, which implies a temporary inversion
in power relationships in an unofficial festive context, as a guide to my analysis of the
Henriad. I will use a combination of the theories of Foucault and Bakhtin in my
analysis of The Tempest.
I have chosen the terms "discourse" and "dialogue" as key terms in the title of this
thesis not only because they play an important role in the theories of Foucault and
Bakhtin respectively, but also because they play an important role in the analysis and
representation of power relationships. According to Robert Young, Foucault relates
''the organisation of discourse ...to the exercise of power" (10). One could also say
that the power relationships in a society are reflected in the portrayal of a dialogue
between different voices representing different sections of or classes in that society as
in Bakhtin's principles of dialogism. I will explain the overall importance of these
terms in more detail in the Introduction and the other relevant chapters.
In the introductory chapter I will first provide a theoretical background for the
thesis as a whole. Then I will look at the specific theoretical principles that are
relevant to each chapter. In the chapter on the Henriad I will look at the way in which
an alternative perspective on power relations and the role of the king are created by
looking at them from the perspective of Bakhtin's concept of carnival. In the next chapter, I will show how Measure for Measure presents us with an evaluation of
different strategies of power, which I will look at from the perspective of Foucault's
theories on power, knowledge and discourse. In my chapter on The Tempest I will
combine aspects of both theories in my analysis of a play that presents us with a
complex analysis of power relationships as a social phenomenon. In the concluding
chapter I will look at the different perspectives on power relationships that emerged
from my previous chapters and attempt to see what its implications are for the
representation of power relationships in Shakespeare's work and perhaps as a social
phenomenon.